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Ex-ADOR CEO Min Hee-jin cleared of breach of trust charges

Published: 15 Jul. 2025, 11:27

YOON SO-YEON
[email protected]

Min Hee-jin in her office in western Seoul on Sept. 15 [JOONGANG ILBO]

Embattled producer of girl group NewJeans, Min Hee-jin, was cleared of charges related to breach of trust during her tenure as CEO of HYBE's subsidiary ADOR.

"In April last year, HYBE reported Min Hee-jin for breach of trust," said Min's PR agency Macoll Consulting in a press release.

"After over a year of police investigation, they have found no illegal actions by Min and today, on July 15, the police have concluded to not pass her case onto prosecution."

HYBE conducted an internal audit on Min and other ADOR executives in April last year after suspecting that the managers had tried to seize control of ADOR by getting a third-party investor involved.

HYBE reported Min and others to the police for breach of trust and Min immediately fought back, refuting HYBE's claims in a two-hour-long press conference the same month.

HYBE headquarters on Sept. 12, 2024 [NEWS1]

After months of continued legal conflict, ADOR's new board members voted to remove Min from the CEO position in August. Min accepted a new contract as a member of the board, but resigned in November.

The five singers of NewJeans also tried to break free from ADOR during a press conference on Nov. 28, claiming that ADOR did not fulfill its duties as an agency and that their contracts were automatically nullified.

ADOR followed with court injunctions to prevent the group members from embarking on independent activities. The court sided with ADOR earlier this year and ordered the five singers to return to the agency, stating they must pay the agency if they perform any activities outside of its approval.

BY YOON SO-YEON [[email protected]]